


Coffee Without Cream is like Christmas in Florida

by boltschick2612



Category: Hockey RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Alternate Universe - College/University, M/M, Tampa Bay Lightning
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-08
Updated: 2017-06-08
Packaged: 2018-11-11 10:38:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 726
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11146710
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/boltschick2612/pseuds/boltschick2612
Summary: Slater isn't a big fan of Florida, and there's only one thing that can make it even the least bit bearable.





	Coffee Without Cream is like Christmas in Florida

**Author's Note:**

  * For [verbaeghe](https://archiveofourown.org/users/verbaeghe/gifts).



> Written to go along with a couple unpublished (on AO3) snippets written previously, where Slater works at the campus coffee shop, and Braydon is a graduate who still visits the coffee shop on his way to work, every day. But, I really think this fic could stand on its own, because basically, that was about the entirety of it, right there! Hahaha. 
> 
> I hope you love it, amazing!

It didn't take Slater very long to figure out that he really hates Florida during the winter. For starters, there really was no winter to even speak of, not like the one he was used to. It also didn't help matters that it felt like the entire state was trying to compensate with cheesy Christmas music, spruce scented candles, and over the top decorations.

He wasn't exactly sure why he thought taking his lunch break in front of the cafe’s fake fireplace would make him feel any better about things either, but he at least had to try. He even decided to wear his thickest, fuzziest pair of winter socks to get himself in the right mindset, and all it successfully did was leave him hot, sweaty, and irrationally angry.

If pressed, Slater would have probably let out a long and heavy sigh, and then say that being so far away from home was really what pushed him over the edge of festive, right into the land of full fledged annoyance.

He knew the matter of moving away to college was largely out his control, but his options were limited at the time. A crowded campus in Florida really wouldn't have been his first choice, but the list of colleges that would accept him was small, and the list of colleges that would accept him  _ and _ offered a halfway decent hockey scholarship was even smaller. But, knowing all this didn't stop him from directing his anger at the current state he was in, both literally and figuratively.

Shortly after arriving for his first semester, he had been able to procure a job at the campus coffee shop, and it served as an ample distraction, something to let his mind rest for a few hours. He loved to study the cafe's small interior, scan all the corners, and memorize the decor. Anything to keep himself from having to do the same with yet another overpriced textbook.

Even on his break, which the cafe was gracious enough to give him an hour of, his eyes flitted over the room, searching.

Slater tried to tell himself that he wasn't secretly waiting for anyone in particular, but he knew that thought was a lie before it could even fully form in his brain, and he was slightly embarrassed to admit his heart beat a little bit faster every time he heard the door open.

Taking a visual assessment of his patrons wasn't something that was high on the list of Slater's priorities. As a matter of fact, he tended to mill about campus without so much as looking a single person in the eyes, always too preoccupied to care. He had so much stuff floating around in his head, everything from world history to advanced psychology, that he sometimes felt he had to concentrate just to keep it all in.

However, there was just something about this particular man that caught Slater's eye from the second he walked in the door. First of all, he didn't look like the usual college student that came in daily, which Slater decided was probably for the better. He just carried himself different, and smiled a little wider every time he said 'thank you.’ Of course, it didn't hurt matters much that he looked really good in a suit.

Normally, Slater would have been extremely happy to spend hours leaning over the counter, smiling and flirting, but the guy...Braydon, as he happened to overhear one day...was always in a hurry, rushing up to the register with a purpose, and out the door before anyone could even think about engaging him in conversation. He kept hoping that one day, he'd be able to catch Braydon when he had more than a few minutes to spare.

The cafe door opened once more, catching Slater's attention, and breaking his thoughts. He looked up, a knee jerk reaction, and spotted a familiar crown of auburn curls that he wished were far more familiar. The way the light caught on the strands, with an almost fiery luminosity, took his breath away, and for an instant, Slater totally forgot all about where he was, let alone the fact that he had sworn his current state an enemy.

All forms of coherent thought were suddenly beyond Slater's capabilities, aside from one; how could anyone  _ not  _ want to be here?


End file.
